25 Movie Gems I Am Proud Of

‘Here
are
25
stories
special
to
me
for
one
reason
too
many,’
says
Sukanya
Verma
who
scored
25
years
writing
about
the
movies
last
week.

It
all
began
in
September
1999,
when
a
freshly
graduated
Xavierite
stepped
inside


Rediff
on
the
Net‘s
bustling
South
Mumbai
office
and
kickstarted
her
journey
from
fangirl
to
film
critic.

Growing
up
on
a
steady
diet
of


bazillion
movies,
believing
in
their
magic
and
turning
old
scrapbooks
into
wannabe

Filmfares
full
of
cut
outs
of
celebrity
photographs
and
curious
captions,
it
was
as
if
I
was
subconsciously
preparing
for
my
journey
ahead.

But
it
is
at



Rediff.com,
where
the
mind
is
without
fear
and
head
is
held
high,
I
truly
learned
my
passion
could
be
honed
into
a
craft.

25
years
later,
still
learning,
still
loving.

25
years
is
a
long
time
but
my
belief
in
onward
and
upward
never
made
me
realise
the
body
of
work
I’ve
accumulated
until
my
kind
editor
asked
me
to
compile
25
of
my
favourite
articles
from
then
till
now.

There
are
thousands
of
features,
countless
specials,
embarrassing
blunders
and
pat-in-the-back
moments
to
choose
from.

All
the
writing
I’ve
done
so
far
is
a
reflection
of
me
as
a
constant
work
in
progress
—
growing,
fumbling,
soaring,
stagnating,
evolving,
experimenting,
slowing
down,
catching
up,
rebelling
and
raving,
but
it’s
quite
something
else
to
be
the
subject
of
a
listicle.

Nonetheless,
here
are
25
stories
special
to
me
for
one
reason
too
many.

1.

One
year
into
the
job
and


I
was
already
pulling
my
hair.
I’d
be
lying
if
I
said
I
took
to
film
journalism
like
fish
to
water.

I
wasn’t
prepared
for
starstruck
nitwits
cluelessly
lurking
about
sets
in
search
of
a
story
yet
having
no
clue
who
is
who.

I
had
no
idea
how
trivial
minded
my
tribe
can
be
what
with
their
ever-ready
arsenal
of
gossip.
And
these
spontaneous
rants
of
a
20-something
is
a
furious
proof
of
the
same.

2.

Back
when
a
story
going
viral
meant
the
editorial
desk’s
inbox
getting
inundated
with
mail,
my


Madhuri
Dixit
exclusive
right
after
she
became
Mrs
Nene
would
receive
huge
amounts
of
traction
for
her
blushing
acknowledgement
of
her
significant
other
Shriram.

An
interview
that
started
out
discussing
her
upcoming
release

Pukar
and
went
on
to
give
several
glimpses
of
the
girl
behind
the
million
dollar
smile,
it
was
quite
a
MAD
moment
for
someone
just
a
few
months
in
the
business.

3.

The
first


Kareena
Kapoor
interview
to
come
out
on
the
net
(or
probably
any
medium)
was
mine.

We
met
at
her
(then)
Bandra
office
where
big
sister
Karisma
was
dragging
out
a
huge
suitcase
ready
to
travel
out
of
the
country.

Still
remember
Bebo
looking
fresh
as
a
daisy
in
a
light
blue
shirt
and
khaki
pants,
speaking
from
her
heart,
already
a
star
in
my
mind.

A
quote
that
she
wouldn’t
do
‘David
Dhawan
kind
of
movies’
ruffled
few
feathers
and
would
frequently
find
a
mention
in
interviews
to
follow.

4.

A
monstrosity
called



Mother
starring
Rekha
is
my
first
ever
movie
review.
But
it
was
around

Munnabhai
MBBS
I
found
my
own
voice
and
the
power
of
expressing
views
as
I
deem
fit.

Every
movie
asks
for
its
own
reviewing
rhythm.
And
for



Munnabhai
MBBS,
it
made
perfect
sense
to
convey
my
feelings
in
a
touch
of

tapori.

‘Bolega
to
Munnabhai
MBBS
ekdum
solid
film,
kya?
Phaltu
mein
rona-dhona
nahin.
Khali
peeli
bomba
bomb
nahin.
Apun
tapori
log
ko
bhi
feeling
hai,
aisa
batayelai
iss
picture
mein.’

5.

In
these
two-and-a-half
decades,
I’ve
bid
goodbye
to
so
many
beloved
luminaries
of
Indian
cinema.

Bits
of
my
heart
were
lost
in
penning
emotionally
laced
tributes
to
Farooque
Sheikh,
Shashi
Kapoor,
Shammi
Kapoor,
Basu
Chatterjee,
Kundan
Shah,
Sridevi,
Rishi
Kapoor,
Vinod
Khanna,
Irrfan,
Yash
Chopra,
Lata
Mangeshkar,
S
P
Balasubrahmanyam,
Bappi
Lahiri,
Saroj
Khan,
Nitin
Desai,
Om
Puri.
But
even
I’m
surprised
at
how
loudly
I
cried
on
learning
about


Kader
Khan’s
demise.

‘The
man
turned
wordplay
into
an
art
form.
I
didn’t
always
remember
his
dialogues
verbatim
but
their
essence
and
metric
style,
always
so
unique
in
its
imagery
and
playfulness,
stuck
to
me.
I’d
play
my
own
private
game
of
crunchy
quips
and
comical
barbs
—
the
Kader
Khanisms
I’d
call
them
—
as
an
ode
to
the
master
insulter
and
hyperbolic
philosopher.’

6.

Some
stories
test
your
dedication.
Writing
about


Asha
Bhosle’s
90
melodious
chartbusters
is
a
testament
to
her
versatility
and
my
appreciation
for
all
those
memories
elevated
by
her
‘tiramisu’
voice.

7.

‘Nightingale
of
India.

Greatest
Indian
Singer
ever.

Goddess
Saraswati
incarnate.

Hyperbole
becomes
Lata
Mangeshkar.

No
amount
of
praise
is
lavish
enough
to
describe
the
supremacy
of
her
voice
as
it
enraptured
generation
after
generation,
year
after
year
and
song
after
song.’

A


special
on
100
Lata
Mangeshkar
songs
was
quite
a
feat
and
worth
every
bit
of
it.

8.

Back
in
my
toddling
20s,
I
wrote
a
weekly
column
called


Sukanya’s
Corner.

As
awkward
it
is
to
look
back
at
the
quality
of
one’s
writing
from
back
then,
I
remember
receiving
a
lot
of
appreciation,
including
from


Rediff
Founder,
Chairman
and
CEO
Ajit
Balakrishnan’s,
for
this
particular
column
where
I
had
fun
imagining
what
sequels
to

Sholay
or

Andaz
Apna
Apna
would
play
out
like.

9.

One
day
I
e-mailed
my
editor
and
suggested
if
I
could
go
ahead
with
a
photo
essay
idea
wherein
I
handpick
25
screenshots
from
a
movie
and
explain
what
renders
it
special
in
both
creative
and
technical
terms.

And
that’s
how
‘25
beautiful
frames
of…‘
was
born.

I
started
with
Santosh
Sivan’s
stunning
photography
in

Dil
Se..
advancing
to
the
likes
of

Dil
Chahta
Hai,

Parinda,

Hum
Dil
De
Chuke
Sanam,

Asoka,

Hum,

Gupt,

Mirch
Masala,

Lagaan
and,
occasionally,
individuals
like
Shah
Rukh
Khan,
Kareena
Kapoor,
Aishwarya
Rai,
Karan
Johar.

10.

Classics
revisited
is
another
dear
feature
that
allowed
me
to
flaunt
my
nostalgia
to
the
hilt.

Guide,
Silsila,
Ghayal,
Arjun,
Taxi
Driver,
Chaudhvin
Ka
Chand,
Kal
Aaj
Aur
Kal,
Umrao
Jaan,
Amar
Prem,
Mili,
Abhimaan,
Half
Ticket,
Khubsoorat,
Lal
Patthar,
Khamosh,
Party,
Dastak,
Qayamat
Se
Qayamat
Tak,
Sikandar,
Ram
Aur
Shyam,
Teesri
Manzil,
Chaalbaaz,
Salaam
Bombay,
Yaadein,
Aag,
New
Delhi,
Jab
Pyaar
Kisise
Hota
Hai,
Khel
Khel
Mein,
Chandni,
Lamhe,
Mohra,
Anand
Math,
Daddy,
Jo
Jeeta
Wohi
Sikander,
Saaransh,
Jawaani
Diwani,
Jaane
Bhi
Do
Yaaro,
Kala
Bazaar,
Shaukeen,
Priyatama,
Mr
India,
Saudagar,
Mandi,
the
list
goes
on…
often
I
am
asked
to
turn
it
into
a
book.

I’ve
had
the
pleasure
to
pen
my
thoughts
on
so
many
diverse
subjects
while
keeping
track
of
changing
trends
and
social
behaviour
through
films.
But
it
was
right
after
I
wrote
about
Bimal
Roy’s



Parakh,
I
was
awarded
the
Best
Film
Critic
at
the
5th
Jagran
Film
Festival.

11.

One
of
my
earliest
movie
memories
is


Ramesh
Sippy’s

Shakti.

To
gush
about
what
it
means
to
me
in
much
detail
and
nostalgia
brought
me
tremendous
joy.
And,
luckily,
to
many
fellow

Shakti
buffs
too.

12.

When
your
review
speaks
to
the
people
who’ve
made
the
movie
as
much
as
those
who’ve
watched
it,
it
takes
a
life
of
its
own.
And
my
heartfelt
letter
to
Shoojit
Sircar’s
relatable



Piku
is
one
such
precious
experience.

13.

I
was
still
a
teenager
in
college
when


Rediff
gave
me
my
first
ever
assignment
—

Kuch
Kuch
Hota
Hai‘s
music
review.

Sadly,
that
section
of
the
Web
site
is
no
longer
accessible,
but
I
can’t
tell
you
how
elated
I
felt
to
keep
that
steeply
priced
CD
and
receive
450
bucks
as
remuneration.

Bottomline,
music
reviews
were
always
my
gig
and
I
wrote
many
more
of
those
until
MP3
culture
took
over.
But
A
R
Rahman’s
perfection
personified


soundtrack
of

Delhi
6
always
opens
a
floodgate
of
sweet
memories.

14.

One
of
the
few
good
things
to
come
out
of
the
pandemic.
My


weekly
fun
and
filmi
quiz
was
my
way
of
pulling
ourselves
out
of
the
gloom,
keeping
things
light
and
blithe
in
the
absence
of
hope
and
Friday
releases.

15.

When
the
world
was
caught
in
COVID-19’s
grasp
is
when
I
understood
the
true
meaning
of
survival
of
the
fittest.

With
everybody
locked
in
their
homes,
no
movies
coming
out,
no
happenings
in
the
world
of
movies,
we
appeared
to
be
heading
towards
indefinite
dull,
dry
spell.

That’s
when
my
lifelong
love
for
the
movies
really
showed
the
extent
of
its
powers
as
I
found
myself
creating


stories
out
of
trees,
balloons,
trains,
theatres,
chandelier,
jhoolas,


torture
tactics,


introductions
and


opening
scenes.

16.

Too
bad
not
many
people
caught
the
virtues
of
this
riveting
underdog
story.
But
I
loved
writing
about
Amitabh
Bachchan
and
his
influences
in
Nagraj
Manjule’s



Jhund.

17.

Before
there
was
social
media,
we
had


Rediff‘s
message
boards.

My
full
on



Andaz
Apna
Apna
gush
fest
as
part
of
the
newly
launched
Mad
About
Movies
special
contains
tons
of
quips
and
anecdotes
penned
down
purely
from
memory
in
a
pre-YouTube
era.

Years
later,
I
did
a
far
nuanced
writeup,
as
part
of
a
guest
column
for
Mayank
Shekhar
but
this
one’s
super
special
as
it
introduced
me
to
a
whole
world
of
fellow
Amar
Prem
fanatics.

Mark
idhar
hai,
forever.

18.

Being
born
in
the
same
week
as
Amitabh
Bachchan
means
every
birthday
is
sacrificed
in
elaborate
dedications
to
the
Big
B.
And
so
I
went
all
out
and
delivered
the

baap
of
them
all
in
my
four-part
80
glorious
moments
of
the
towering
legend:

Par
1,


Part
2,


Part
3,


Part
4.

Seeing
his
whistle-worthy
action
in

Kalki
2898
AD
though,
I
guess
I
will
be
updating
this
space
soon.

19.

There
are
fluff
fashion
stories.
And
there
are
ones
take
up
hours
in
looking
for
that
perfect
picture
from
various
eras
and
blending
them
into
attractive
collages
to
express
the
history
within
a
seemingly
superficial
story.

When
a
Web
site
blatantly
ripped
off
my
labour
of
love
documenting
the


changing
face
of
hairstyles
in
Bollywood
over
the
years,
I
had
no
choice
but
use
social
media
to
point
out
its
pathetic
plagiarism.

20.

All
work
and
no
play
makes
Jack
a
dull
boy.

This
movie
buff
can
be
quite
the
cricket
cheerleader
too.
It
was
such
a
thrill
to
give
my
ilk
a
voice
in
this


enthusiastically
penned
column.

21.

I
am
not
curious
enough
to
interview
cagey
individuals,
least
of
boring
actors
controlled
by
PR
machinery
and
image
conscious
entourage
of
advisors.
But
for
my


Mithun
Chakraborty
special,
gaining
a
deeper
understanding
his
one-of-a-kind
cult,
I
made
an
exception
and
spoke
to
his
various
fans
and
film-makers.

It’s
a
profile
I’m
rather
proud
of.

Koi
shaq?

22.

Once
upon
a
Super
Filmi
Week…

For
a
couple
of
years,
I
compile
a


weekly
column
where
I’d
spiritedly
spill
the
beans
on
how
all
things
filmi
imprinted
the
seven
days
of
my
week.

It
was
fun
while
I
lasted
and
revealed
facets
of
me
if
not
the
whole.
Sometimes
this
sound
boarding
with
the
self
would
provide
me
ideas
for
future
features,
sometimes
a
record
of
memories.

23.

Like
I
mentioned
in
my
review,
‘in
nearly
24
years
of
my
career,
I’ve
never
witnessed
such
a
tsunami
of
enthusiasm
for
a
Shah
Rukh
Khan
release
—
advance
booking
surfeit,
police

bandobast
outside
the
theatre
et
al.’

It
was
something
to
watch



Pathaan
surrounded
by
a
crowd
that
couldn’t
have
enough
of
him.
It
didn’t
feel
like
a
movie.
It
felt
like
a
revolution.

Box-office
records
are
regularly
broken
but
history
is
created
just
once.

24.

This
is


Mera
Wala
SRK.
Is
he
yours
too?

25.

Clearly,
silver
anniversaries
hold
a
special
place
in
this
’90s
kid’s
heart.
But


my
time
travel
isn’t
limited
to
25
years
ago.

Be
it


1978,


1990
and,
above
all,


1983
get
rich
ode
in
my
effusive
ink.

Feature
Presentation:
Rajesh
Alva/Rediff.com